


Real

by EcholovesRoot



Category: The Gifted (TV 2017)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-08
Updated: 2018-11-11
Packaged: 2019-08-20 17:55:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,770
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16560506
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EcholovesRoot/pseuds/EcholovesRoot
Summary: How could you ever trust a telepath who can control people's mind?That's the question Lorna keep asking herself. How does she knows that what she's feeling is real or another way for Esme to manipulate her?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Esme is my baby, she's so precious and I want the best for her. And let's be honest, the best is Lorna. 
> 
> I came here to read some fics about them but I only found 4 and decided to help fix the problem (each of them was great by the way but that's not the point).

Lorna has no idea how this happened. She is not sure of anything anymore. All she knows for sure is the warm feeling pressed against her body, the soft hair in her left hand, the perfect skin under her right one. And more than anything, she knows the ecstatic feeling of Esme's lips on hers.

She somehow managed to get the blond woman against a wall of her bedroom and is curently kissing her like their lives depend on it. And Esme is kissing her back with as much passion and hunger than her. Their hands seem to dance on each others like their bodies react to some music than only them hear. Or maybe that Esme can hear it too, judging by the whimper escaping her throat more and more frequently.

How did this happened?

Lorna has to focus and remember, that couldn't be right. 

Yes, she always thought that Esme was incredibly pretty, she wasn't blind. But the triplets are psychopaths that manipulate anyone to get what they want. It had been clear for a while and Lorna had witnessed it first hand. So how could she had let her guard down? 

But Esme was different, right? Lorna didn't know how she knew that but it was a certainty. Esme seemed to have a mind on her own distinct from their collective mind. And more importantly, she cared. Lorna couldn't explain why Esme cared but it was obvious. So obvious that it made her recognize Esme each and every time. The other two? No idea which one was which, but Esme? Lorna always knew. 

And she can't pretend that they didn't have some sort of connection in the Mutant Underground. They understood each others. And she couldn't pretend either that they haven't gotten a little bit closer since they were here. But there is a reach between getting somewhat close and desesperatly kissing each others against a wall like there is no tomorrow. So what the hell happened?

Lorna's thoughts process stops working for a bit, when Esme pull her impossibly closer and used the momentum to switch their position. Lorna instinctively tenses and hears against her ear "You're not used to be the one against the wall, are you?" Esme asks, whispering in her music-like voice, "Don't worry, I don't bite... Except if you want me to" she chuckles.

Lorna feels kisses on her neck, and yes she feels a little bit of teeth, like Esme is trying to prove a point. Lorna also feels her body reacting and... wanting. She wants more, she feels like she's drowning and Esme is the only thing that can save her. She *needs* her. No. That's not right. She's Lorna, she doesn't need anyone, especially not to breath. Why the hell is she thinking that?

 

"Wait!" Lorna says out of breath and pushing Esme away from her. "I... I can't. I don't understand"

 

Esme seems a little bit confused and rattled. And she looks like she's having some problems with getting back full control of her own brain. But Lorna doesn't see that, Lorna is focused on her breathing and proving to her body that she's alright. 

"What's wrong Lorna?" Esme asks hesitantly. "Did I do something wrong?"

"I don't know, did you?" Lorna sneers at her. 

"I'm sorry, I don't understand. Do you give me permission to see what you're talking about?"

"You're asking me permission? To enter my brain?" Lorna dryly laughs.

"Of course, I wouldn't enter your mind without your consent. Not you, never. I thought we agreed". Esme almost seems scared now. And even Lorna can see it. She is clearly lost and doesn't know what to do.

They stay like that for several seconds, facing each others. Esme not daring to move or say anything more as long as she doesn't know what she did to upset Lorna.

"How... How do I know this is real?" asks Lorna in a really weak voice "If you're doing that for securing my loyalty, please stop. You don't need to. Just please" voice breaking "Stop"

Esme starts to understand and her heart breaks a little. She comes closer but stops when she sees Lorna flinch. "Lorna, you don't think...?"

"How would I know?" she yells, tears building in her eyes "I want to believe that this is real, but why and how? I... I'm sorry Esme, I really need you to leave right now" she says closing her eyes. 

She waits for an answer that doesn't come and opens her eyes to look at Esme, but the blond woman is nowhere to be seen. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments are appreciated. Good or bad.  
> Good is pretty cool.  
> Bad? Tell me what you didn't like so I can improve myself.
> 
> Thanks for reading ;)


	2. Chapter 2

Lorna stays there watching the void in the space right in front of her. The void that used to be filled with the most beautiful blond she's ever seen. And yes, she's counting the other two, because somehow Esme has always been prettier than her sisters. Lorna knows it is stupid to think that because they're supposed to be identical. But the same way, she can tell them apart, she knows that Esme is more radiant, more real and overall just the most beautiful of the triplets.

She can still taste Esme on her lips, and even though she just left Lorna's body is missing her like she just lost a limb. Everything is throbbing and empty and painful, and the world shouldn't be this hard. Lorna has a purpose and a daughter. That is more than most people have. She has a cause she is ready to die for. And if she was ever selfish enough to want more, she has Andy. That adorable boy turning slowing into a wonderful man before her eyes. That boy who has an incredible gift: The power to make Lorna laughs. 

So why isn't it enough? It has to mean that this feeling isn't coming from her. That is the only thing that makes sense. Esme played her and Lorna fell for it like a fool. But it won't happen again. No, it won't. Now, she knows. Lorna realized it before it was too late, and everything is going to be ok. Ok? Lorna is convinced she is right, no doubt in her mind. The power of this demonic blond girl must have been lifted because Lorna is thinking clearly again. She's free. So why is everything still hurting?

She goes to the door and opens it, half especting to find Esme on the other side with her smug stupid smile. No stupid smile, smug or otherwise. No anything really. Just more void to fill Lorna's heart. 

And as on cue, Dawn starts to cry on the next room of her suite. 

 

The next day is a really quiet one. Andy comes in Lorna's room early to tell that they're having a free day. Reeva is out doing Reeva's stuff and the triplets are out on a secret mission or something. She offers Andy the possibility to spend the day with her and Dawn, which Andy joyfully accepts. They talk a lot about really stupid topics and really deep ones too in that random suggestion you only find in the conversations with close old friends... Or with siblings. He teaches her how to play with some of the new games he got. And she shows him what new things Dawn seems to like lately. Then, they end up watching TV and eating a bag of chips. Happy with the chance to have had a normal day. 

Lorna feels nice, normal and relaxed. Everything is great and tomorrow she'll go back to training and help fighting for a better world for her daughter, and for Andy. Again, what more could she possibly want? 

However, as soon as the door closes behind Andy leaving for the night, a punch hits her in the chest and sucks out all of her air. As soon as he leaves, he seems to leave with all the oxygen of the room. She didn't know it was one of his powers, it is strange. The world seems to become tighter around her, like it is about to swallow her whole, and she can't breath. She does her best to take deep breathes but more she tries and more she is aware of her incapacity to breath. Her brain starts to panic. And that's when she remembers what this feeling is.

She lets herself fall near the nearest table and starts to count the objects on it. 1, breath, 2, breath, 3, breath, 4, breath, 5 breath, 6, breath, 7, breath. She focuses on the beating of her heart, closes her eyes and breath. Then she starts the process again, over and over again until she knows she's calm. Until she can breath freely again. 

"It has been a long time that mommy got one, but she's okay now" *she says more to herself than to the sleeping Dawn* "Mommy is okay".

 

The next day, the triplets are still gone. It is a relief for Lorna who didn't want anyone to know about her panic attack still fresh in her mind. 

Reeva is here today however so training it is. But no matter how much she tries, Lorna doesn't seem to quite get it right. She doesn't know what's wrong, her powers are working perfectly, but the strenght she's using is never the right one and her aim is off. Lorna can see than the more the hours pass, the more increasingly frustrated Reeva gets, which doesn't help Lorna concentrates. 

Even Andy notices and gives her a worried glance. That concerned look becomes fearful when he sees Reeva standing ready to explode from exasperation until one of the helper comes and tells her something in the ear. And just like that, Reeva leaves the training room without a word. 

Andy and Lorna look at each others and without a word they decide to figure what is going on. That is not something they would normally do, but none of them want to continue training and they have a bad feeling about what could be this urgent like Reeva had to leave right this second. 

Having lost sight of Reeva for a little bit and not knowing where she went, they almost lose her entirely. Luckily, they are quickly guided with her screams. "I am not going to ask you again, where is she?" there is a silence for half a second "Are you really expecting me to believe you have no idea of her location?"

"We're sorry, Reeva" says a voice.

"We really want to help you" says a similar voice.

"But we can't" say those two voices in unisson.

Two, thinks Lorna. That's weird.

"We're not alone" the voices say.

Then Lorna hears two set of footing on the marble floor, perfectly identical. And she sees them. Exactly similar. Too cold to be Esme. Which only meant... Lorna turns towards Reeva's worried face also apparing before her eyes. Where the fuck is Esme?

"That's definitively not" says one of the sisters.

"Any of your business" finishes the other. And they both walk pass Lorna without stopping in that surreal classy way they walk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, that part was supposed to be really short... And then it was not.  
> I'm sorry there is not Esme in it.  
> So I guess, I'll have to have to write one more chapter, won't I?


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is not comic accurate and I apologize to whom it offenses, but to be fair Esme/Lorna is not comic accurate either so...

5.am... Lorna sees on her alarm clock. 5.am she thinks while feeding her baby for the third time of the night.   
She sighs, Andy will come get her in a little bit more than an hour and a day of training and planning is going to be ahead.  
Why do people have kids anyway? Sure Dawn was great but most children suck and Lorna really doesn't see why would parents put up with it.

Lorna almost dozes off to sleep when she feels a faint presence. In her half asleep state, there is something weird that happens. She can feel, almost taste, fear. No not fear, anxiety. She can taste anxiety but it's not hers. Lorna is familiar with the feeling but right about now she can breath fine and doesn't the thought patterns she usually has during an episode. 

Lorna finishes waking up entirely and the feeling is gone. She realizes that Dawn went back to sleep so Lorna puts her back in her crib. She stretch a bit, having spent something like 20 minutes in the same position. And before she can ask herself more questions about the strange feeling she experienced before, she hears a soft knock on her door. 

That's weird, she thinks, Andy would never come this early and he wouldn't knock like that. And the helpers learnt the hard way to not wake her up. 

Two more soft knocks on the door. Lorna could swear they were even softer than the ones before. It's like the person knocking was afraid to hurt the door or was trying really hard to not make a single sound, which kind of defeat the purpose of knocking. 

But then, nothing. Just more silence. No stepping sounds leading away, nothing. Just silence waiting for a pending judgement.

Lorna walks really steadily and being careful doing any noise at all. Then she opens the door and finds herself looking right at a very stressed out and sleep deprived... "Esme?".

"Good morning, Lorna" says the blond with a smile that doesn't quite reach her eyes. Then Esme proceeds to enter the room as if Lorna opening the door equaled to an invitation. 

"What are you doing here?" Lorna asks, "Where were you?".

Esme stops, looks at her, makes her smuggest smile and asks "Why? Were you worried?".

  
As on cue, Lorna closes herself up. She points at the door that is still open. "Look, it's early and I don't actually care about whatever game you're playing today, so get the hell out of here. Wait, how did you even know I was awake... Have you been inside Dawn's head again?"  
The tension in the room became palpable. Lorna fighting the urge to strangle Esme, and the blond feeling herself getting angry at the accusation.

"Of course not!" Esme says dryly. "I heard her cry so I knew you would be up. That was not really rocket science".

"You've heard her cry?" Lorna asks confused, "But I've picked her up half an hour ago, why..."

"it's took me a while to convince myself to knock, Ok?" says a very frustrated Esme. "Happy?".

 

Lorna sighs and closes the door. She signals Esme to go sit and proceeds to go herself. However, Esme doesn't move and begins to look at the room and the furniture in it like they are the most amazing and interesting things in the entire world. 

Lorna watches Esme intensely, wondering what happened to the woman and why she looked so very tired. There was something wrong about Esme's whole demeanor. She looked scared and out of place. The woman who usually plastered such a feeling of confidence on her face wasn't even tried to fake it this time.   
And yes, Lorna was almost ready to admit that she had been worried. And that, watching the woman in front of her now, she was still worried. Almost. Not really. 

"What do you want Esme?" she asks when it is clear that the blond isn't going to say anything. "Where... Where were you? Your sisters didn't want to say anything".

That last sentence is met with a laugh. "I bet they didn't. They were very much against the idea and saying it would mean facing Reeva's wrath by themselves. Which they wouldn't do of course. Not for me, not anymore, not if it is related to you".

That was really not helping the whole 'Lorna is getting more and more worried by the second' thing. "Esme, what did you do?". 

Lorna watches as the woman in front of her takes a deep breath. "Promise me you won't get angry" pleads Esme.

And just like that, worry turns to anger, and Lorna pushes Esme against the nearest wall and pines her against it. Anger flares up even more when she remembers the last time she pinned Esme against the wall. "I am already angry. What. Have. You. Done?".

"Of course the first person I've ever fallen in love with has a really big anger management problem" jokes Esme, not minding at all the explosion.

 

Lorna lets Esme go like she was on fire and the mere thought about touching was burning her soul. "Wh... What?".

That the moment Lorna's brain chooses to pick up on another detail. Esme had a bag. Why? Esme and her sisters never have bags, especially not inside. And there is something weird with that bag, or with something inside of it. It weird, it's like Lorna could actually feel it. Really weird, but wait did Esme said she was in love with her? Or is she in love with someone else that also happen to have an anger management issue? What? That's totally possible. 

"Nevermind that" says Esme. "Look, the thing is, as much as we trust you, Reeva thought that you might be somewhat unreliable due to your temper".

Lorna really wanted to have something to say to counter that but the last few seconds were really not helping her case.

"Which is why" Esme continues "She might have forgotten to tell you about a certain item that the Inner Circle has had for years hidden away in a safe place."   
Esme raises her hands in sign of surrender to diffuse the next before it even happen and to calm Lorna. "It was just temporary, as soon as the revolution would have secured, I am sure she would have given it to you". She takes something out of the bag. "Now, I figured you wouldn't be one for the full helmet look so I took the liberty of making a few changes to it".

Coming in full view of Lorna is a... crown? Headpiece of some sort?

"It's beautifully" Lorna says forgetting the anger she was supposed to feel because of the beauty of the piece. Or is it the dance the atoms of the metal seem to be caught in that has a beauty and familiarity she was expecting to feel. "What is it?".

"It is from one of the first helmets of your father" Esme says as an explanation. "His helmets had the ability to stop telepaths. At some point, he was so powerful that he could change the molecules from any metals to achieve this results. But for this one he used Adamantine. I don't know if you are familiar with it, this metal has the power to block any attempt at mind control".

"Wait, are you saying?"

"Me and my sisters wouldn't be able to control you, even if we wanted to, as long as you are wearing this on your head... So you understand why Sophie and Phoebe were not thrilled by the idea" Esme jokes.

Esme takes the crown into her hands and stressfully fidgets it all over the place. "May I?" she asks in an almost shy voice, pointing to Lorna's head.

"S... Sure" whispers Lorna. 

Esme comes closer by the second taking the longest time she can. Lorna is sure that she's doing it on purpose, but she couldn't figure out if it was out of fear or just to get a rise out of her. Knowing Esme? Probably both.   
Esme is suddenly really close, her body is touching Lorna's and really there is no reason for her to be this close. Nobody needs to be this close, not to be a stupid crown on someone's head. But here they were, Esme being impossibly close, her arms above Lorna's head and slowly lowering themselves until the crow is exactly placed right. Then the hands linger a little bit longer on Lorna's face, on her neck, shoulder before finishing their course on Lorna's arms. 

"So?" whispers Esme, who definitively should learn about personal space, "what are you feeling?".

 

What is Lorna feeling? That is a good question. It is funny, she is always asking herself this question lately in one form or another. What is she feeling?  
Power, for starters. She has no idea how her father made the helmet in the first place but she knows... No, she feels that he never used a single tool. She could feel her father's power going through it. It was a part of the headpiece now, and was a part as important as the Adamantine. It could protect her, it would work. She knows it. 

But looking at Esme's face, Lorna knows it wasn't what the question was about. She knows what the blond meant and she knows why she did it.   
Lorna doesn't want to think about it. She did really good not thinking about it until right about now. But Esme's eyes are so sad, so lonely and so tired that Lorna's first instinct is to kiss her fiercely and to tell her that everything is going to be alright.

Lorna laughs at herself. She has been so busy trying to convince herself that Esme wasn't worth her trust that she never stopped to realized that she was the one lying. Yes, Lorna has been the liar. She lied to everyone and more importantly she lied to herself. So she has to be a big girl now and she has to be honest. "Nothing" she says determined.

Lorna never heard a heart break before but she's pretty sure she's hearing it right now. 'Nothing'? Really? That the word she went with? Let's try that again shall we?  
"I'm sorry" she quickly says "I meant, nothing changed. At all. I still feel the same thing for you that I felt two days ago".

Esme looks so relieved right now it almost could make Lorna cried. "And what is that exactly?" she asks bringing back her smile.

"Esme, don't make me say it" Lorna warns.

"I can't read your thoughts anymore my dear. You're going to have to tell me". All traces of doubts, fear and stress are gone. Even the obvious tiredness magically disappeared. All that's left is that stupid smug smile.

How Lorna hates that smile while crashing her lips on Esme's lips hoping it would shut her up.

Wait, no that's still a lie. Lorna can't explain why but she loves that stupid smug smile. She's pretty sure she would kill for that smile. 

Still, Lorna can't say the words, but that's okay she thinks, for now. At least, judging by how avidly Esme is kissing her back, she doesn't seem to mind. 

 

Because the absolute truth is: Lorna is in love with Esme.

And she still doesn't know how this happened. 

But she thinks that maybe, just maybe, it doesn't matter all that much right now.


End file.
